Transcript #97

MuggleCast 97 Transcript


Show Intro


[Intro music starts to play]

[Audio]: Hey there, MuggleCast listeners. I am back to inform you of some excellent news. GoDaddy.com is having better deals than ever. For only $3.59 a month for 12 months, you can get GoDaddy.com’s economy package. With 250 gigs of bandwidth, five gigs of storage and up to 500 e-mail accounts, you can get your own website up and running with success. And as usual, enter code Muggle — that’s M-U-G-G-L-E- when you check out and save an additional 10 percent on any order. Some restrictions apply, see site for details. Get your piece of the internet at GoDaddy.com.

Andrew: Today’s MuggleNet podcast is brought to you by Borders. In May, thousands of Harry Potter fans descended upon New Orleans for the Phoenix Rising Conference. Borders was there to take in the sites and share a lively discussion of the series that has bewitched the world with some of Harry’s most dedicated fans. Listen in and watch the action yourself. Check out the Phoenix Rising, Borders book club discussion at Bordersmedia.com/HarryPotter, or click on the Borders banner at the top of the MuggleNet page.

[More intro music begins to play]

Ben: This week’s show is brought to you by Audible.com. The internet’s leading provider of spoken word entertainment. Get a free audio book download of your choice when you sign up today. Log on to Audible.com/MuggleCast today for details.

[Intro music continues to play]

[Annoying Mac Computer voice]: Because we are on the crowded train in another country to record an intro, this is MuggleCast episode 97 for July 2nd, 2007. Andrew and Jamie rule.

[Intro music continues]

Andrew: Well, we have a busy show this week because there is lots to discuss.

Jamie: Yes there is.

Micah: Like what?

Andrew: We are going to be places this summer.

Laura: Places?

Andrew: We are going to be at a lot of places.

Laura: That’s very vague. Very vague.

Andrew: On the little mini show that you slept through.

Jamie: Ah, the mini show I slept through. It was just that good.

Andrew: Yeah, yeah. No, you just refused to get out of bed.

Jamie: Actually, okay, Andrew, I can’t let that go even though we just started the show. I wasn’t asked if I wanted to be on it. They just held the microphone to my head and said, “Jamie, you coming to the show.” And I was like, [makes noise you say when you are half asleep] and went back to sleep.

Andrew: Dude, we checked with you before hand…

Jamie: But there’s a difference…

Andrew: Do you want to be in on this? You were like, “No, I can’t. I’m tired.” I was like, “No, that’s good because we don’t have room for one more mic anyway.”

Jamie: Ok, whatever. This doesn’t matter. This is so irrelevant, it’s unbelievable.

[Andrew laughs]

Andrew: Okay, well, no, in all serious, though, we do have a lot to announce this week. it’s a big week because as Micah promised last week in his intro, we are going to talk about our big podcasting plans that we are all going to be at! Except for Eric.

[Eric starts laughing, and Laura joins in]

Jamie: Yeah.

Andrew: And this is a big week for Eric because he is actually in the United States. I can’t believe it. [Eric laughs] Thanks for staying in your home country this week, Eric.

Eric: Oh, yeah, no problem. No problem. It’s been good fun.

Andrew: Glad to hear it. I’m Andrew Sims.

Jamie: I’m Jamie Lawrence.

Eric: I’m Eric Scull.

Laura: I’m Laura Thompson.

Micah: And I’m Micah Tannenbaum.

[Intro music continues louder]

Andrew: It’s been a very busy news week. The news just keeps rolling down the MuggleNet page every time I go on there, there is another six stories posted by Ciaran, or Rosie…

Jamie: Yep.

Micah: Who’s Rosie?

Andrew: …who else posts news on Muggle…? Rosie O’Donnell.

Micah: Oh, really? She started working for us now?

Jamie: Yeah, she started working for us.

Andrew: After the view she decided she wanted…

Laura: How can you not know your own staff, Micah?

Micah: What?

Andrew: After the view, she decided that it would be a good idea to go with the sort of Harry Potter…

Laura: It’s a big step up.

Jamie: She’s a big fan, anyway. So, uh, exactly, yeah. It is a big step up. A national syndicated show is nothing to MuggleNet.

Andrew: MuggleNet is basically a nationally syndicated website.

Micah: International.

Andrew: Worldwide. Internationally.

Jamie: Wow, could we be anymore modest to this point?

[Everyone laughs]

Andrew: Yes. Yes, we can.


Listener Rebuttal: Draco The Dragon


Andrew: Well, of course one of the big stories this week – well, one of the more interesting stories. Let me read the email here from, Ricey. I think that’s his name?

Jamie: Or her.

Andrew: Or her. 17, of Canada. She (or he) writes:

“I was going through the comments on MuggleNet about the audiobook oh DH being released on July 21st, and someone said that Draco means dragon, which is a possible connection to the DH deluxe edition cover. Do you guys think that Draco is an Animagus? Could it be Draco on the DH cover, helping the Trio by helping them on the Horcrux hunt? Stephen Fry did say, ‘Never tickle a sleeping dragon’ – perhaps this is part of the storyline. Just wondering what you guys thought. I’m a bit skeptical about this, but hey, its a possibility. I’m sure Jo’s put in many surprises for us in DH.”

[Jamie laughs]

So, in the big announcement that the audiobook would be released along side the real book, for the first time ever, at least in the UK, there was a little video that Stephen Fry recorded where he said he was very excited to be releasing the book, and he can’t talk about it yet, of course, but at the end he said, “I can’t tell you much, however I do want to say one thing.”
And he said the whole, that Latin slogan.

Jamie: No, no. That, that, I would say, is a reference to, or is a copy of, when Jo wrote Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them in the intro written by Dumbledore, it says, “To all Muggles, I’d like to say that all the beasts mentioned in this book, all the creatures mentioned here, are completely fictitious and clearly and cannot hurt you…” and you know and stuff like that. And then he paused and then he says, But to all wizards I merely say Draco dormiens nunquam titillandus.” So, it’s just – I don’t think it any reference to the plot. It’s just like Harry Potter has come a full circle and that’s the motto of Hogwarts. He’s just saying it…

Laura: Yeah.

Jamie: …to try and be funny. And to try and, you know, show that it’s an important thing. I don’t think it means anything, but – And also, a dragon is quite a kind of big creature. Because you know, it always seems to be human sort of animals that they transfigure into. Like, it would be kind of unfair if they had a fight and one turned into a rat, you know Pettigrew, and one turned into a dragon.

Andrew: Right.

Laura: Right. I mean, they say you turn into an animal. You know, I would assume a dragon’s are…

Jamie: Yeah, exactly. A dragon’s a beast.

Laura: Yeah.

Jamie: Here’s a question, what Disney film does this whole thing remind you of? Like, having fights when you’re transformed into an animal?

Andrew: Mulan.

[Andrew and Laura laugh]

Jamie: Sorry?

Laura: Yeah, that’s what I thought of. [laughs] Mulan.

Jamie: Oh really? Oh well, there’s two then.

[Laura laughs]

Andrew: I’ve never seen it, but… [laughs]

[Eric and Laura laugh]

Jamie: Why? What happens in that?

[Eric laughs]

Andrew: Well, it’s just a dragon.

Laura: Yeah.

[Andrew, Eric, and Laura laugh]

Laura: Eddie Murphy, the whole dragon thing.

Jamie: I was going to say The Sword in the Stone. You know, Madam Mimm…

Laura: Oh, yeah.

Jamie: When they transform into creatures and like Merlin.

Andrew: I never saw that.

Jamie: You’ve never seen The Sword in the Stone?

Andrew: Well…

Jamie: Andrew, get out of my house, now.

[Andrew and Eric laugh]

Andrew: It’s raining. I don’t want to.

Eric: Jamie, since you asked, there was a sequel to, what was it? Snow White called Happily Ever After.

Jamie: Yeah.

And the wicked witch’s brother, or something, I believe could turn into a dragon in that. And also…

Jamie: Oh, awesome.

Eric: Yeah. And it also reminds me of, non-Disney, Mortal Kombat: Annihilation. Where they all turn into…

Jamie: Oh, and Eric, I was just thinking that. That’s absolutely brilliant. I was just thinking that. Sorry, go on. Go on.

Eric: Thank you. But, yeah…

[Andrew laughs]

Eric: But, yeah, dragons in general are a lot bigger than humans. And even like turning into a stag is, like, relatively plausible when you compare it to…

Jamie: Completely, yeah. Yeah.

Eric: Turning into a giant…

Jamie: Into a blue whale. It would be unfair. You would just crush them.

Eric: Exactly, exactly. And you’d, of course, need water. You’d, of course, only be able to change…

Jamie: Precisely, yeah.

Eric: …in a pool or something. Your neighbor’s pond.

Jamie: Yeah, in your pond.

Eric: But the… Yeah. So, I don’t think it’s Draco. I don’t think he’s an Animagus. Or if he is, I don’t think he’s a dragon.

Jamie: Yeah, it’s quite unlikely.

Eric: Little bit unlikely.

Andrew: That seems too fairy tale-ish. Too fairy tale-ish.

Laura: I don’t think he’s powerful enough, for starters.

Jamie: Yeah. You do need to be…

Micah: Yeah, plus he’s a wimp. [laughs]

Jamie: He is a bit of a wimp, yeah.

Andrew: Just the whole concept in general.

Jamie: He couldn’t even kill someone.

Andrew: Draco as a dragon. That’s…

Laura: Yeah.

Andrew: Just makes me want to…

Eric: Yeah, gosh! It’s, like, so…

[Laura laughs]

Eric: You know, first year of…

Jamie: He couldn’t even…

Laura: It’s so easy to kill somebody.

Jamie: Yeah. It’s only the gravest crime known to mankind.

Laura: You would know, Jamie. [laughs]

Eric: Yeah, exactly. Exactly. But still, you shouldn’t tickle him. You should not tickle Draco.

Jamie: Yeah, you should not tickle him, yeah.

[Andrew laughs]

Jamie: Because he gets mad.

Andrew: Whether he’s Draco or not.

Jamie: It’s like the Hulk.

Eric: Even if he is a dragon.


Cut Kreacher?


Andrew: Well, moving on to some other news. We found out this week that there was a little debacle going in Warner Brothers. Well, between Warner Brothers and J.K. Rowling. About a certain character to be cut out of the film. And they weren’t sure whether or not to cut out this character or not. And Jo highly recommended that they keep it in.

Jamie: Spoiler. Spoiler. Spoiler. Spoiler. Spoiler. Spoiler. Spoiler. Spoiler. There you go.

Andrew: Nobody knew who it was, until the other day when David Yates did reveal that it was actually Kreacher who J.K. Rowling insisted stay in the movie. And it’s interesting – let me quote him here.

“It was Kreacher, actually. We took Kreacher out, and Jo said, ‘Listen guys, you don’t have to put Kreacher back, but I’m just telling you, if you want to kind of keep a thread going for six and seven, you might want Kreacher to come back.’ She basically told us Kreacher plays a role in Seven, in a sense. She hinted. We thought about it for five seconds, and he came back.”

Andrew: [laughs] Which is awesome.

[Eric laughs]

Laura: Yeah.

Andrew: So, very interesting. I think we’ve discussed it on the show before…

Laura: Yeah.

Andrew: What kind of role would Kreacher play. If he, indeed, was the character that was…

Jamie: I mean, do you think it’s important because of the whole he, you know, betrayed Sirius and it’s to do with that storyline. Or just because of his position, how his master is Harry and how he tries to get back to Bellatrix?

Eric: Well…

Jamie: And be evil.

Laura: I think that’s probably it.

Eric: I think it’s his role as the house elf for the Black family. We’re trying to find out, you know, R.A.B. and stuff, who was Kreacher’s master just as much.

Micah: Andrew.

Jamie: Yeah.

Laura: Well, there’s also been a lot of debate..

Micah: It was David Heyman, not David Yates.

Andrew: Are you sure? Because I just checked the article and it said David Yates.

Micah: It says…

Jamie: Maybe they both said it, simultaneously.

Micah: Oh, no. You know what?

Laura: Yeah. At the same time, in sync.

Micah: I’m looking at the…

Jamie: It was just coincidence, seriously.

Eric: No, it is David Yates. But, when I read the article before we knew who it was, Jo’s words as quoted in the article were, “You’ve got your hands tied behind your back if you don’t put this character – You know, if you don’t keep this character in…” And, you know, that’s one of those moments where I say, “Go, Jo.” For telling them that. And also for, you know, caring about them tying their hands behind their backs. Because, we’ve talked at length before about how they just cut things out of the movies. And they’ve got very little continuity between the movies. And for things to happen in the future to only be developed in that film, it kind of is not as admirable as we want it to be. So, this was cool.

Laura: Well, you know there has also been a lot of debate about the creature that’s behind Harry holding the sword on the cover. And I think that this could pretty much confirm that that’s Kreacher.

Andrew: Oh, you think so?

Eric: What?

Laura: Yeah, because – Well…

Eric: No, it’s still Dobby.

Laura: I don’t think – why do you think it’s Dobby?

Eric: Wait, do we see his face? I’m sorry.

Andrew: No.

Laura: No, you only see a hand holding a sword. If Kreature were important – well, the thing is, if Dobby were important, we would still see Dobby in the movies.

Jamie; Yeah, exactly.

Andrew: Oh yeah.

Laura: She would have done the same thing, just sort of said, “Hey, keep Dobby in.” but she said Kreature, which means he’s definitely far more significant, which means that it’s more likely that it’s him on the cover.

Eric: I don’t think that at all.

Andrew: I agree with that.

Eric: I actually don’t think that at all.

Andrew: Why not, Eric?

Eric: She just wished Dobby a “Happy Birthday!”

Laura: She wishes…

Andrew: It doesn’t matter. He’s on the calender.

Jamie: Eric, she…

Eric: But come on, he’s a house elf.

Laura: Everyone gets a “Happy Birthday!”

Jamie: She wished the inventor of the self-starting cauldron a happy birthday; there’s got to be more important people. I think she just wishes everyone one, yeah.

Andrew: Yeah.

Jamie: Interesting fact…

Eric: Yeah, well I just don’t think Kreature come around on – well, okay.

Jamie: No, I was just going to say, interesting fact: Did you know that if you’re in a room with 23 people – okay, so if there are 23 people in one room, there’s more than a 50 percent chance that two people will share the same birthday? Isn’t that interesting?

Laura: Really?

Eric: Oh my god.

Andrew: How is that possible when there’s 365 days a year?

Eric: That is really interesting.

Jamie: There are 365.

Andrew: Three-hundred-and-sixty-five days a year, yeah thats wha’t I said.

Jamie: Oh, I thought you said 369. It’s possible because you have more than one pairing. If you have 23 people, you have one and two, one and three, one and four, one and five, then you have two and three, two and four, two and five, two and six, you have three and…

Andrew: Huh?!

Jamie: …three and three. So, you have all these pairings…

Andrew: What?!

Jamie: So there’s over a 50 percent chance, but I think for it to be a 100 percent chance, you have to have exactly the amount of people, and exactly the amount of days, but for like a 99.9 percent chance, it’s like, 200 and something. It’s stupid.

Andrew: That’s crazy.

Laura: We should find out when we do a show, just start naming off days and let people raise their hands.

Jamie: Yeah, we should.

Andrew: Yeah.

Eric: Yeah. You should get them to line up in ascending birthday order.

Jamie: Laura, are you suggesting that we only get 23 people to our shows, because I think you’ll find…

Laura: No! No, no, no, no, no.

Andrew: If by 23 you mean 23,000.

Jamie: Twenty-three million.

Laura: Yeah. [laughs]

Micah: Well, Jamie, you’d also have to subtract us from the 23.

Jamie: Yeah, exactly. Yeah.

Micah: So we’d have less.

Laura: Yeah. [laughs]

Jamie: So we’d actually have 16.

Andrew: Oh, my birthday is May twenty three-erd.

Jamie: Twenty three-erd?

Laura: Twenty three-erd?

Eric: Mine’s April 23rd. There’s a lot of No. 23s.

Andrew: Crazy.

Eric: And that’s a movie I saw on the way here.

Laura: Oh, hat’s the stupidest movie.


The Times Review of Order of the Phoenix


Andrew: Speaking of interesting facts with birthdays, the Times came out with their Order of the Phoenix review. Three out of five stars. Average.

Jamie: But can I just say that UK newspapers – The Guardian also reviews and has a film review section – and it’s just so professional and polite. It doesn’t actually tell you what you want to know about a film.

Andrew: Yeah, that’s the thing.

Jamie: It’s like, “The juxtaposition of character development, and plot outlines.”

Andrew: Exactly! Exactly!

Jamie: “It’s oxymoronic in the sort of past tense way.” It’s just, you don’t want to know that. You want to know, should I go see the film or not? You can’t trust these broadsheet reviews, even though three is pretty good. They don’t really give fives.

Andrew: Well let me quote the review. You’re exactly right, let me quote the review. “The acting skills of Radcliffe, Rupert Grint and Emma Watson have improved, but not enough to truly flesh out the characters and provide the narrative depth this transitional, plot-advancing film needs.”

Jamie: There you go, exactly.

Eric: That’s a great accent, Andrew.

Andrew: “They have got angry and determined down pat at this point…” Oh, it should be English. [switches to an English accent] “…but struggle somewhat on the more nuanced grimaces.”

Jamie: My god…

[Eric laughs]

Andrew: “Harry’s bellowing cod-psychoanalysis of Voldemort is jarringly awful.” That was bad.

[Eric laughs]

Jamie: It’s so full of adjectives to describe. I don’t want to read stuff like that.

Laura: Yeah, well, I mean, what I get from that is what they’re saying is they all have the very common emotions down, but they’re really having a hard time portraying their characters or something like that?

Jamie: It is. It is, yeah.

Andrew: Hmmm.

Laura: Which kind of upsets me to read that a little bit…

Jamie: I’m crying.

[Andrew laughs]

Laura: Because there’s a lot of different emotions in this story. It’s beyond the point of…

Jamie: I don’t know about you guys, but I like reviews that use words like “Awesome!” and “Amazing CGI effects!” and, you know?

[Micah laughs]

Andrew: Neato! Neato!

Jamie: Wow! He was badass, man!

Eric: Right, but…

Jamie: You know? Stuff like that.

[Everyone laughs]

Eric: But if it’s a bad movie.

Jamie: What is cod-psychoanalysis? It’s like a study of fish.

Laura: [laughs] Yeah, that’s what I was thinking.

Micah: Jamie, have you seen the movie The Eraser?

Jamie: Oh, with Arnold Schwarzenegger?

Micah: Yeah, you don’t examine his character development throughout the course of the movie, do you?

Jamie: [laughs] No, no, no, I don’t.

Eric: Well look, guys. This is – no, Jamie’ completely right, this is not the kind of stuff you want to hear about. I mean, with a movie that’s this book being turned into movies, the last thing you almost want to hear about is how the trio is fitting in their roles, because what I’m more concerned about is how the movie handles everything, and if the movie is an actual good movie. They’re here complaining about the acting, obviously not at all the kinds of things that we would necessarily – or anybody – would want to hear about, right?

Laura: Well…


Early Screenings


Eric: But I heard something that might actually shed some light on it, because I actually have a friend who just contacted me today and was privy to one of the super secret audience screenings.

Andrew: MySpace.com has these things called – well, first of all, everyone has a MySpace, here, right?

Jamie: Yeah.

Laura: Unfortunately.

Andrew: MySpace. Everyone’s got a MySpace? Except for Micah. Micah, how do you count yourself as a human in this world?

Jamie: Yeah.

Andrew: If you don’t have a MySpace.

Eric: He has a Facebook.

Andrew: A profile. MySpace dot com slash Andrew Sims, add me!

Laura: He doesn’t count himself as an emo in this world because he doesn’t have MySpace.

Andrew: Top 8 me! Mirror pics! L-o-l.

Jamie: That used to be true, though. MySpace isn’t really the haven of emos that it used to be.

Andrew: No, it’s not. It’s everybody now.

Jamie: Woe is me.

Andrew: you know, I have a confession to make. Actually, no, I don’t want to talk about that, never mind. So anyway, MySpace has this thing called Black Curtain screenings, where all you have too do is print out a picture of your profile with the Harry Potter profile and the black curtain screenings profile in your top eight or whatever, you bring it to them at one of these ten cities, and you get to see the movie for free, which is actually pretty cool.

Jamie: That is cool.

Andrew: And like, I’m sure Eric was about to get into, there’s been a few listeners of the show that have actually gone to these Black Curtain screenings.

Eric: Yes.

Andrew: And sent in little reviews, right Eric?

Eric: Yes, that’s exactly how I knew this person and how it was introduced. My friend Jennifer, of New York, had just been to a Black Curtain screening and has given me much more valuable information in a review format then The Times seemed to be useful for us Harry Potter fans. Do you mind, guys, if I just do the first kind of non-really bad spoilerish what I heard from her?

Andrew: Yeah, I was going to say just don’t give away…

Eric: Yeah.

Andrew: …spoilers.

Eric: I just…

Andrew: Just very, very…

Eric: Right.

Andrew: …dumbed down.

Eric: What I had heard, actually, was that the movie has a disappointing amount of one-liners in it, and that there was some particular tweaking of the dementors that was not really true to anything worthwhile. Like I heard, for instance, that they begin to grip Harry and start choking him against the wall, with their arms. [laughs]

Jamie: And then they clothesline him.

Andrew: Uh-huh

[Eric, Andrew and Laura laugh]

Eric: And then they curb him.

Jamie: Yeah.

[Everyone laughs]

Jamie: Yeah, they curb him. That is exactly what happens, seriously.

Andrew: There, uhhh…

Jamie: They’re these Nazi skin heads, these dementors.

[Everyone laughs]

Eric: I don’t even know. So, I mean, but Jennifer did say it was a good movie but I heard a lot of slightly bad things about it that were disappointing. Now, namely the one-liners. What do you guys think about that? Because you think that one or two in a movie is funny. It’s great but…

Andrew: Yeah.

Jamie: When you say one-liners, do you mean jokes, like one line jokes? Or just…

Eric: Yeah.

Jamie: …lines that are too short?

Eric: Oh no. Maybe…

Andrew: No, jokes right?

Eric: One-liner jokes, which possibly replace…

Jamie: Oh well, yeah.

Eric: …a lot of the exposition that could be happening, you know? Or story development.

Jamie: It’s a bit annoying, you know, but I think perhaps it’s there to provide the much needed comedy against the serious backdrop of the film, and I’m starting to sound like a Times review, but…

Andrew: [laughs] Yeah.

Jamie: …that wasn’t as bad as the… But yeah I’d say it could be for that. But a few are okay, but I – when you say one-liners I was painfully scared of Harry’s line in Chamber of Secrets, when he says, you know, “Don’t worry I will be.” To Lucius’ “Let’s hope Mr. Potter will always be around…”

Laura: Oh god that was awful.

Jamie: “…to save the day.”

[Micah laughs]

Jamie: It came second only to Harry’s freeze frame finish at the end of Prisoner of Azkaban on his broomstick.

Laura: Yeah.

Eric: Well see it’s just, what I don’t want to be reviewing the movie of is saying, for how many great actors they have in this movie, how can it still be crap? Or, how can it still be disappointing? Or, how can they not – I mean, I really don’t think they need to worry about the acting as much as they do the script treatment and treatment of the story and everything else.

Micah: Right. Well can I add one thing.

Eric: Yes.

Micah: It kind of relates to what you’re talking about. Did all of you guys listen to the Order of the Phoenix press junket, or did you read it?

Laura: Uhhh…

Micah: Because what was said in there by pretty much all the guys – Yates, Heyman and then Goldenberg – was that they’re such fans of the Harry Potter series and they try to incorporate everything that they possibly can, and that they’re so hurt when they can’t put things in…

Jamie: Yeah.

Micah: …that they really want to. So I’m wondering, do you think that at all ties into them just saying it, for the sake of saying it, when you hear things like there’s just these one-liners that were thrown in to sort of cut down on time?

Andrew: Probably.

Micah: I just find that hard to believe.

Laura: Well, you also have to admit that’s a matter of opinion. We don’t know what…

Andrew: Exactly.

Laura: …Eric’s friend considers a disappointing amount.

Jamie: Exactly, yeah.

Eric: No, no. It’s true as well, it’s true.

Laura: …of one-liners.

Eric: It’s very true and I wish – I mean it was just early this morning, first thing, I woke up, I heard it from her so I don’t remember exactly and she did say she liked the movie, but there were a few complaints and I didn’t want to start off the reviewing session with kind of a negative note, you know not expecting this movie to be much. But, as far as I heard there were some things – I mean what do you guys think about the dementors? I mean [laughs] come on that’s – if that’s true that’s a little bit upsetting.

Andrew: Yeah.

Micah: On the one-liners though, what I was going to say is, are they putting in just sort of generic one-liners to supplement some of the good one-liners that are actually in the book.

Eric: Oh, well, there’s no way to tell.

Micah: There’s a couple of them in Order of the Phoenix that are very well-written, obviously one of them being sort of, “Give her hell, Peeves.” Or, “Give her…” At the… When Fred and George leave.

Eric: Well as far as we know, Peeves isn’t in the movie, is he?

Micah: Right, which is another…

Laura: Yeah.

Micah: …compromising factor that I’m sure they felt so horrible about not putting in the film.


Other Order of the Phoenix Reviews


Andrew: We do have a couple of other reviews that some listeners sent in and I just want to go through them real quick, they don’t really give away any spoilers. Samantha Johnson, 16, of Minnesota said: “It was so incredible, the best movie yet! Some small details were out of place but they did not, like in previous movies add entirely new things, like talking shrunken heads. The acting was absolutely brilliant.” She really enjoyed Evanna Lynch’s role and she was happy with Dumbledore’s role.

Another one comes from Alanna Bennet of Portland, Oregon. She says she still can’t believe that she got to see it two weeks early, which is cool in itself. “The thestrals are great,” she says. “Luna and Bellatrix equals awesome. And Umbridge is the height of perfection, seriously how could someone be so Umbridge-y.”

[Everyone laughs]

Andrew: That’s a good sign. I think that’s a good sign. And then lastly, John Spencer, 15 of Atlanta said: “I personally hated every other HP movie but this was great not only as a movie, but of a movie made after a book. I also took along some of my friends that aren’t crazy about the HP movies and they loved it too.” So, overall I think people are going to enjoy this movie.

Laura: Yeah.

Andrew: We’ve said that a million times…

Laura: I think so, as well.

Andrew: …and we’re just beating around a bush by saying it again. So…

Jamie: It sounds like that – I don’t know if you all feel the same, but it sounds like people aren’t comparing this to the book as much, like the other ones. You know?

Andrew: They shouldn’t be.

Jamie: No no, they shouldn’t do – but like one and two, because they were in their infancy, people were like, well, you know, Harry Potter is a book series, but now when it’s obvious that this movie is only 2 hours and 15 minutes, you can’t possibly compare it to the book, you can’t fit that many pages into 2 hours and 15 minutes, so perhaps people have realized that these are completely separate and that, if you enjoy it for a film rather than as a book, then your enjoyment is going to be elevated tenfold, just because you aren’t thinking, “Well, that’s not what I thought when I read about Luna.”

Eric: Well, what Alanna Bennet also says, from Portland Oregon, is that, “They stay true to the books in a lot of ways, even though they stray here and there. And, it was too short.” So there we get that again, that too short-ness.

Andrew: Yeah.

Eric: Which you know, shows that they like the movie…

Andrew: Are…

Eric: Just maybe could have added even more, or tried to do things here and there. But again, yeah.

Andrew: Yeah.

Micah: Any hardcore fan is going to say that it’s too short.

Eric: Yeah.

Micah: I mean regardless of what they think…

Laura: Yeah.

Micah: Overall, the film could have been great, but I’m just thinking to myself that any hardcore fan, no matter what, is going to say that the film was too short and it lacked something.

Eric: You’re probably right Micah.

Micah: I think you’re going to get that no matter what.

Andrew: Yeah.

Micah: But the one thing I’m starting to notice though, and I’m not sure what you guys think of this, is Evanna Lynch…

Laura: Yep.

Micah: …Helena Bonham Carter and Imelda Staunton, are all getting such high praise, but it seems like the trio is not living up to standards. [laughs]

Andrew: They’ve been…

Laura: Well yeah, I realized that…

Andrew: [laughs] Good point.

Laura: I think the general consensus is that Evanna Lynch, Imelda Staunton and Helena Bonham Carter are getting all of the…

Jamie: Imelda Staunton.

Laura: All of the praise for this. So you don’t – I mean, I noticed that.

Andrew: Yeah, but they are new. They’re fresh to the series. I think that’s one of the factors.

Jamie: Yeah, but no – I mean I thought that Bonham Carter and Imelda Staunton would be awesome anyways. Obviously it’s…

Laura: Yeah.

Jamie: Evanna you weren’t so sure until you see it because she’s a new actress in short, but everyone said she’s absolutely amazing. So, I can’t wait to see that.

Andrew: Right. Our very own Ben Schoen was also – he’s seen the movie already. Of course he can’t talk about it yet.

Jamie: What?

Andrew: Yeah, he has. It’s part of the embargo, but he was very impressed with it. He did say though that you absolutely cannot relate it to the book at all. He was talking about a few scenes specifically that really cannot be compared because if you do you’ll be very disappointed.

Laura: Mhm.

Jamie: Very disappointed, yeah.


Road Trip Tour


Andrew: So, but anyway, we have a couple big announcements this week, concerning a couple things that we’re doing. For one, earlier this week – well, Jamie was sleeping.

[Everyone laughs]

But Ben and I, along with Mikey B. and Alex Carpenter of The Remus Lupins announced that we’re going to be doing a little road tour, cross country in America starting in Las Vegas and heading northeast towards Pittsburg. For full details on that, you can go to MuggleCast.com and click on the – there’s a link there on one of the most recent news posts, and we’ll put a permanent banner up there soon enough. It’s going to be a lot of fun, so if – you know, we’ve done stuff in LA, we’ve done stuff east coast in New York City, but never in the middle of America, or anywhere in between. Except for Vegas. So…

Jamie: I’m a bit apprehensive about this because eight days cross country is quite – quite tough. Isn’t is going to be eight hours driving a day? Or something like that?

Andrew: Something like that. It varies from location to location.

Jamie: Oh god.

Andrew: So it’s pretty far.

Eric: Are you guys going to have a trailer, or you just in a little car?

Andrew: A Ford Freestar. A Ford Freestar is what was booked.

Eric: Laptop parties.

[Laura laughs]

Andrew: And bring your iPod Jamie, that’s all I can say.

Jamie: [laughs] I’m going to bring everything.

[Andrew and Laura laughs]

Every form of entertainment that exists. I’m going to buy 100 audio books, 1,000 songs and I’m going to…

Micah: Are you going to pick up hitch hikers?

Jamie: Am I going to what? Am I going to what, Micah?

Micah: Pick up hitch hikers along the way.

Jamie: [laughs] Yeah, yeah we will.

Micah: Bring them to your show.

Jamie: We need to make some entertainment. Precisely.

Andrew: [laughs] Yeah.

Eric: The cop chase that will follow, Jamie, because hitch hiking is illegal in some states.

Jamie: Oh really? Yeah, but they’ll be big Harry Potter fans…

[Eric and Laura laugh]

…so we’ll just, you know, we’ll just tell them a few theories and we’ll send them on their way. They’ll be fine.

Andrew: Yeah, exactly. So we’re really excited about that. Definitely come out if you’re near any of these – I think it’s not eight locations, I think it’s like 10, so come on out if you’re near any of those, we’re really looking forward to going on a little summer road tour.


Book 7 Plans


Andrew: Also, we are organizing two very, very, very, very big parties for the Book 7 release on July 20th, the night of. Laura, Micah, Jamie, and I, along with Kevin will all be in London for a huge book event, right Jamie?

Jamie: Yeah we will, we are going to be at Waterstone’s Piccadilly Circus, central London. This bookstore is six stories.

Laura: Oh my god.

Jamie: And is the biggest bookstore in Europe. And they are expecting to their own party about 2,000 people. Now I went to their Order of the Phoenix party a couple of years ago, and it was huge. They had this queue that just went all the way around the block and they had entertainment, they had all these jugglers going around, they had Harry Potter look-alikes. This thing was massive, everyone talking in the queue in costume. It was a freezing cold night, and it was absolutely electric, the atmosphere. And they had celebrities turn up, they had Judy Dench, they had Sting…

Laura: She was there?

Jamie: …from The Police.

Laura: Oh my gosh, I love Judy Dench.

Jamie: No, no, Sting is a he.

[Andrew and Eric laugh]

Laura: No, I was talking about Judy Dench. Not Sting, no I’m not a retard.

Andrew: John Dench.

Eric: He only sings high.

Jamie: Yeah, yeah, no no, yeah. There will be all this stuff planned, it’s going to be unbelievable. And, on top of that, we have been talking to them recently and we’re going to do a Book 7 podcast from Waterstone’s Piccadilly. It’s going to start at 8:00 p.m., we’re going to go for two hours, and then everyone who attends will then be able to join the queue and get their copy of Book 7. They’ve – we can have 1,000 people to this podcast, and what they’re doing is they’re giving us an entire floor of Waterstone’s and there are going to be T.V. screens all around the building, so you can watch it if you can’t get on the main floor. I think the main floor holds about 800, and so we’ll have 800 here and then other people around the – yeah.

Andrew: It’s the fourth floor.

Jamie: Yeah, sorry, the fourth floor. And then, what they’re doing is they’re setting up an e-mail address, and what you can do is you can e-mail this e-mail address and then they will mail you out tickets on lanyards, and then you wear it around your neck, and then they will let you in to see the podcast; otherwise, you can’t come in. So, it’s a pretty special event. And then after it – it’ll finish about 10 – and then after it, you can go down to the queue and enjoy their entertainment. It’s going to be absolutely enormous; it’s going to be the biggest one in England, easily.

Laura: Oh my gosh.

Jamie: And I can’t think of anywhere in Europe where there’s going to be a bigger one, either. So, we’ll give you more details…

Andrew: This is…

Jamie: Huh?

Laura: I get chills when I think about this. This is going to be amazing.

Andrew: Well, it’s – we’re not kidding when we say it is going to be huge.

Jamie: It really is. It’s going to be absolutely massive.

Andrew: J.K. Rowling’s event, without a doubt, will be the biggest one, but we can daresay this is going to be the second biggest event in England.

Jamie: Well, I think more people are going to come to ours, since hers is very closed off for security, to be honest.

[Andrew laughs]

Jamie: She’s only the author, Andrew.

Andrew: I was trying to be a little modest. [laughs]

Jamie: Sorry. No, no, her’s is going to be big, obviously, absolutely massive. But in terms of fan-made ones, this one is – seriously, if you’re anywhere in the U.K. or continental Europe, we do suggest you come.

Laura: Or the world?

Jamie: Yeah, or the world. Mars. If you’re a martian, just come down. It’s only 18 billion miles or something.

Andrew: Yeah.

Jamie: It’s going to be worth it, seriously.

Andrew: Well, there are a few Americans who do want to fly out to England…

Laura: Yeah.

Andrew: …to experience the release, and this is definitely a great place to do it.

Jamie: Yeah.

Andrew: J.K. Rowling’s event – not that we’re saying it’s going to be bad or anything – but we’re just saying it’s going to be closed off.

Jamie: It is very closed off.

Andrew: And if you didn’t get into it…

Jamie: Also, also, also…

Andrew: …you’re going to have to go somewhere else.

Jamie: Waterstone’s are doing all kinds of special deals for the podcast, but you know, people going for the podcast, they’re going to give you a 10% discount on the deluxe book, they’re making all these special shirts which you can only buy on this night. It’s going to be absolutely amazing. This thing is going to be the biggest party ever. So, we’re going to be releasing more details soon. If you want tickets to this amazing, unbelievable, and probably the best day of your life event – am I selling it well?

[Andrew laughs]

Laura: Very well.

Jamie: Okay.

Andrew: Yes.

Jamie: E-mail harrypotter at waterstones dot com.

Andrew: All one word.

Jamie: We’ll be providing a link on the website. Yeah, all one word. With how many tickets you’d like, and your address, so they know where to send them to, up to maximum of 10 per person. And then they’ll send your tickets out to you so you’ll have them on the day. It’s up to 1,000 people, so get e-mailing as soon as you can, so you know that you’re going to get them and that you can come. And, Andrew…

Eric: Jamie?

Jamie: Yeah?

Eric: If I show up, will there be room for me?

Jamie: Yeah.

Eric: Okay, cool.

Andrew: You should tell us soon, though. [laughs]

Laura: No, Eric. You can’t come. You can’t come, Eric.

Andrew: Yeah.

Laura: We’re telling you you can’t come.

Jamie: Yeah, you can’t come.

Andrew: Yeah, you’re going to be guest number 1,001.

Eric: Yeah.

Andrew: They’re not going to let you in.

[Laura laughs]

Jamie: And we should probably mention our grand prize for it. Should we, Andrew?

Andrew: Yeah.

Jamie: At this podcast, we’re going to have a load of prizes to give away, a load of competitions, but our grand prize is a V.I.P, all-expenses paid trip to the podcast, which includes transport to the hotel, overnight attendance at the podcast, everything. Only for U.K.-ers, so please don’t apply if you’re in Mars as we talked about before, or in the U.S., or anywhere else on Earth. We’ll be announcing details on how you can enter this contest and how you can win this grand prize a week from now on Episode 98.

Andrew: Yeah.

Jamie: So, listen to that.

Andrew: Yeah.

Jamie: And do come to this event, because you’re going to really, really enjoy it.

Andrew: Yeah, seriously, this is going to be a huge event. Laura, Micah, Kevin, and I – oh, and Jamie too – we’ll all be there. Laura and Micah, you guys excited? This is going to be your first trip to England with you, isn’t it?

Laura: Yes! Oh my gosh, I’m so excited. I was hoping we would go so bad.

Micah: No, it’s not.

Andrew: Oh, Micah, it’s not your’s?

Laura: Oh yeah, Micah goes over there to visit Jo weekly. Didn’t you know?

Micah: Yeah.

Andrew: Oh, right, right, I forgot. Sorry.

Micah: Yeah, I mean, come on.

Andrew: Sorry.

Micah: No, no, yeah, it’s going to be the first time over there, so I’m really looking forward to this.

Andrew: Cool.

Eric: Yeah.

Micah: It sounds like a really good time, and I just can’t wait.

Andrew: Yeah, it’s going to be huge. We’re not kidding. It’s going to be huge.

Eric: You guys do have to promise me one thing though, that you will play – and Jamie and I have talked about this – you will play “The Final Countdown” by Europe.

Jamie: [makes trumpet noise] We should, yeah. We should do that. [makes noise] Or, we could play “White and Nerdy” by Weird Al.

Andrew: Gonna get white and nerdy.

[Laura laughs]

Eric: You know, I thought about that too, I thought, you know what, this totally does kind of blow away “The Final Countdown” for the final book.

Jamie: It does. It really does. I couldn’t decide.

[Laura laughs]

Eric: [singing] They see me mowing my front lawn, I know they’re thinking I’m so white and nerdy.

Andrew: So, while they sing, full details will be available on – actually, full details are available on MuggleNet.com now, right now, so go on MuggleNet.com or MuggleCast.com if you want to seek more information. Full details are on the site. Definitely come out. Deadline, I don’t know if Jamie mentioned this, is July 13th at midnight to request tickets, because they have to mail them to you.

Jamie: It is. But, we advise you e-mail a long time before to guarantee you get in. Now, we are selling this a lot, but it really will be an amazing event so please, please come and see us.

Andrew: Yeah. So back over – yeah?

Micah: And Andrew?

Andrew: Yeah.

Micah: I have a question.

Andrew: What?

Micah: Because this is such a big event, because, hey, it works, can we stamp this as Episode 100?

Andrew: Oh, that was going to be another thing. Yes. This is going to be episode – this live event, it’s going to make me cry, is going to be Episode 100 of MuggleCast.

Jamie: Episode 100, nice.

Andrew: It’s perfect timing, it’s going to be huge, that makes it even bigger. 100 episodes. I mean, we’ve even done little shows, I mean, technically, this could be Episode 100 because we’ve done little, mini-shows before.

Eric: Oh wait, guys. Wait, so, what, everyone’s going to be there then except me, right?

Laura: Well, no, Ben won’t be there.

Eric: Laura, Micah, Kevin, Jamie, Andrew – oh, not Ben.

Laura: Yeah.

Jamie: Yeah.

Andrew: Ah, so…

Eric: Now I don’t feel so bad.

[Micah laughs]

Andrew: Speaking of Ben, Ben, along with Emerson, will be in Chicago for a United States event at Oak Park, right outside Chicago, actually. For the past two books, Goblet of Fire – no, sorry, Order of the Phoenix and Half-Blood Prince – we’ve held huge events at this Oak Park place. So, if you’re in the United States in the Chicago area – anywhere in that Midwest area, I guess it is – definitely check that out. Full details again are on MuggleNet.com; of course, we can’t promote that much. For one, Ben’s not on the show to give more details.

[Laura and Eric laugh]

Jamie: I was just going to say…

Laura: I love how…

Jamie: It’s like we have this huge event and it’s massive you should definitely come over…

[Eric laughs]

Jamie: …and if you’re in the Chicago area, you can pop in, maybe, if you fancy.

Andrew: Well, I don’t know what to say, because I don’t know details about it.

Jamie: No, no, it’s…

Laura: It’s true.

Jamie: Well, no…

Eric: Oak Park is a nice community area…

Andrew: Eric knows about it.

Eric: I’ve been there. I was there for the Order of the Phoenix event when Emerson and Jamie were at the Waterstone’s.

Jamie: Yes.

Eric: So, I was in Oak Park and it’s a great community area. They turn the main street there with the bookstore called The Magic Owl, I believe, or The Learned Owl and – no sorry, The Magic Tree bookstore. That’s right.

Jamie: How many people are there again, Eric? I heard a load of people.

Eric: They get about 10,000.

Jamie: Yeah, so it’s a huge – it really is a big event.

Laura: Yeah.

Jamie: So, and they have a load of things, don’t they? They have activities?

Eric: Yeah, all the shops are turned into the shops at Diagon Alley, etc.

Jamie: Wow.

Eric: I am sure they have improved it since Book 6 and for Book 7 especially – it’s going to be massive. So I don’t know what Ben and Emerson are doing there, but they’ll be there and you can guarantee there will be MuggleNet stickers for everyone and…

[Jamie laughs]

Andrew: Full details will be on MuggleNet.com – they’re on MuggleNet.com right now along with the Chicago even. Emerson made a nice little flyer that is going to be online, so check that out – go to MuggleNet.com right now and get all the details about both events. They are both “Huuuuge!”

Jamie: Yes, they are. Massive, in fact.

Andrew: So that’s what we are doing this summer. [laughs] It’s a lot of stuff.

Laura: It is.

Andrew: And we hope to see everyone out there supporting the show and the website. So, thank you and of course, we’ll be talking about…

Eric: That’s it for this week’s MuggleCast.

Andrew: Yeah.

Eric: It’s been an hour.

MuggleCast 97 Transcript (continued)


Other Announcements


Andrew: [laughs] That did take up the whole episode. I do want to say, quickly, just – I just want to remind everyone – that we are going to be at Enlightening 2007. We’re also going to be at Prophecy. I know we’ve talked about those before, so again, visit MuggleCast.com for more details about those. Thank you very much. One final note – I’m sorry, I have to do this – one final note. [laughs] Me, Jamie, and Kevin are going to be at the Order of the Phoenix premiere. We’re going to be doing a podcast at the Piccadilly Theatre. It’s this huge theatre in london. Jamie was very surprised when I told him this.

Jamie: Yeah [laughs] Very surprised.

Andrew: It’s – it’s a huge theatre we’re going to be doing this in, and it can hold about 1,200 people. So, if you’re going to be in London for the premiere, definitely come down.

Jamie: Be prepared to share a seat. [laughs]

Andrew: No, there’s going to be plenty of room for everyone. MuggleNet.com, once again, for full details. All right, and finally, one last, last, last thing – the US premiere. If you’re going to be at the LA Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix premiere, we will be at the Borders of Westwood, where we were for – after the Podcast Awards. We’re going to be there on July 9th, the day after the premiere, at 5 p.m. So, definitely come down and check that out.

Jamie: Yeah.

Andrew: Once again, for the last time, full details on MuggleNet.com. Hey, let’s move on, now. We have a show. We have a show to talk about.

Jamie: We do.

Andrew: For everyone else who doesn’t care.


Listener Rebuttal: Bellatrix’s Words


Andrew: We have some rebuttals this week. Laura, you want to take the first one?

Laura: Okay. The first one comes from Mark, 30, from Ireland. He says:

In Episode 96, you spoke briefly about when, in ‘Order of the Phoenix,’ Bellatrix tells VOldemort, “He is here, he is below.” It was suggested that she was referring to Sirius Black. I always believed that she was referring to Dumbledore. She was warning Voldemort that Dumbledore (the only one he ever feared) was here in the Ministry and that he was below in the Department of Mysteries.

Jamie: Hmmm. Hmmm. But isn’t that the…?

Andrew: It does make sense.

Jamie: It does, but…

Andrew: It’s true.

Jamie: …isn’t that the ambiguity about it? It could be Dumbledore, it could be Harry, it could be Sirius, it could be, you know?

Eric: I don’t think it’s Harry.

Laura: Well, I don’t think it’s Harry because Harry was right there.

Eric: Yeah.

Jamie: Oh, well, perhaps – I have to dig myself out of a hole now. Perhaps she was trying to trick him.

Laura: To trick…Voldemort?

Jamie: She doesn’t really like Voldemort, because…

[Laura and Micah laugh]

Jamie: …he turned down her marriage proposal. So, she wants to annoy him now.

Eric: Jamie, are you familiar with the PostSecret books? PostSecret? Have you ever…?

Jamie: I’m not, no.

Eric: All right, never mind, then. Forget it.

Andrew: Okay.

Laura: Yeah, I think she was definitely referring to Dumbledore. I mean, there’s really no question about it in my mind.

Andrew: Yeah, well, last week, though, we were talking like it was about someone else.

[Eric laughs]

Laura: Okay, see, I have no clue where this rebuttal came from, so I’m just… [laughs].

Andrew: Ohhh, ohhh, yeah, I’m pretty sure this one was Jamie’s fault. Also, we have another e-mail from Monica [laughs] – I’m just kidding, but…

Jamie: No, no, I think it is my fault, then.


Listener Rebuttal: Malfoy Mansion and Lucius’ Items


Andrew: It’s okay, that’s fine. Okay, yeah. It wasn’t my fault. Monica from Virginia writes, with the subject “Malfoy’s Embarrassing Items?” And she writes:

I was just reading ‘Chamber of Secrets’ again and when Lucius says “I have a few – ah – items at home that might embarrass me, if the Ministry were to call,” it makes me think that he might be harboring a Horcrux somewhere in his mansion. He seems to have a hiding place there, as the Ministry didn’t find anything during the raid, and Lucius was holding the diary before. What do you think?

Eric: I mentioned this.

Andrew: Eric?

Eric: Wait, did they say I mentioned this? Because I totally – I told this whole story and made those exact same conclusions in Episode 95, I think. Because I was rereading Chamber of Secrets and I said his drawing-room floor. But okay, I’ll stop being indignant and say yes. Don’t kow if Lucius has any more Horcruxes because he already had the diary, but I do think that possibly, we’ll be able to see the Malfoy mansion as a setting in one of the books. And I think I asked you guys that.

Jamie: I don’t know. You probably did. I’m sure you did. But isn’t…

Eric: Laura, do you remember me asking this?

Laura: No.

Eric: Whatever. I could have dreamed it.

Andrew: That’s okay, Eric. We trust you.

Eric: If it wasn’t on an episode, I’m sorry. [laughs]

Andrew: Mhm.

Jamie: But wasn’t the whole point with this that when Lucius says, “Do you think you can hurry up Borgin? I have important business elsewhere.” Isn’t that the whole thing? He knows he’s going to go and dump the diary, and he says, “I have a few items at home,” and didn’t someone say certain poisons he’s got? Didn’t he mention in some other book that it was poisons and dark magic stuff? He did, definitely.

Andrew: Ummm…

Eric: Yeah.

Jamie: I can’t remember which book it is, but a Horcrux is a good bet, but I don’t see why Voldemort would want it in someone’s house that he knows, you know. He doesn’t trust these people. They’re not his friends.

Laura: Yeah.

Eric: The only reason Lucius had the diary was because of a possible future plan that they were kind of working on…

Jamie: Yeah.

Eric: …and Voldemort fell before it happened, and even then Lucius supposedly didn’t know the full potential of the diary, just that it would open up the Chamber of Secrets. And obviously when it got destroyed that is why Voldemort got so angry.

Jamie: Yeah. Exactly, yeah.

Andrew: Hmmm.

Jamie: Interesting though. Very interesting.

Laura: Yeah.

Andrew: Yeah. Definitely.

Eric: Yeah. Plus, also let’s not forget, once Lucius Malfoy left, and Harry remained, Mr. Borgin I believe it was said something…

Jamie: Ah, yeah.

Eric: …muttered under his breath something to the effect of, “Rumors are there is more hidden that what you are…”

Jamie: Twice as much, yeah.

Eric: “…twice as much as what you are trying to sell me.” So, could be.

Andrew: Interesting.

Jamie: It is interesting.

Andrew: Well, we are going to move on now to a whole bunch of voice-mails.

Laura: Mhm.

Andrew: A lot of you have been calling in our wonderful voicemail numbers: 1-218-20-MAGIC. I don’t remember the other two. I doubt anyone else does.

[Eric and Laura laugh]

Jamie: 828…

Laura: 020-844-06-77. I remember that one.

Jamie: Wow. Wow.

Andrew: No. That wasn’t it, was it?

Laura: I’ve heard you say it 50 million times.

Andrew: Wow!

Eric: We changed that number, Laura.

Andrew: Yeah. We changed it.

Eric: Just today, so that you would sound intelligent, and we would be able to say…

[Everyone laughs]

Andrew: Hah hah! Hah hah!


Voicemail: Number of Horcruxes


Andrew: Okay, now let’s get to the first voicemail now.

[Audio]: Hey, MuggleCasters! This is Brett from Memphis, Tennessee. I was calling in, because I had a theory about the Horcruxes. Basically, I was wondering if you thought it was possible that there were only five Horcruxes ever made? My reasoning for this is a couple things. First off, Dumbledore says that Voldemort was trying to make his final Horcrux out of Harry, so I just don’t think that Voldemort is the kind of person that would give up on doing something. It would almost be admitting defeat if he was like, “Oh, I can’t make Harry Potter my death for a Horcrux, so I am going to do it for someone else.” My second reason is that he is supposed to save all his Horcrux making for really significant deaths, and the caretaker of the Riddle house, Frank, I don’t see him as being a very significant death. Just wanted to see what you guys think. I love the show. Keep it up, and that’s it.

Jamie: [gasps] Every life is important, Brett!

[Eric and Laura laugh]

Jamie: But Isn’t this like – you’d think that if he was planning on making Harry out of one then, yeah, that’s completely possible. If he was saving it, and didn’t Dumbledore specifically say that he reserved Horcruxes for important people. He planned these things, you know, when he was going to make it, so it is entirely possible that he only made five plus his soul, and Harry was going to be the sixth, seven plus his soul, but then he didn’t make it, obviously because it backfired on him.

Laura: Yeah, and I think that definitely Harry would be plenty significant just because, you know, to say that he made his last Horcrux out of the one person who could have destroyed him.

Jamie: Completely, yeah, but also, do you…

Andrew: Yeah.

Jamie: …think he went to the house knowing what kind of power this person would have? So, saying that…

Laura: No, he didn’t.

Jamie: Yeah, but I mean if he says, you know, “One has the power to vanquish you,” does that mean one when he grows up and has finished his formal education has the power to vanquish you, or one has just an innate mutation that when you walk into the same room as him, you vaporize? So, perhaps he went there thinking, “I need my full power in case Harry has something about him now that I need to battle,” and also you would think that if seven is the most powerful magical number, and he did think that he had to go there with full power in case Harry was super-powerful, then you would think he would make all seven beforehand, so that he was as powerful as he possibly could be, so there was no chance of him being defeated by Harry.

Laura: Yeah.

Jamie: Even at that early stage.

Eric: Yeah.

Laura: Yeah, I agree.

Eric: No, exactly, and we have even come to the conclusion that even – didn’t, I think even Dumbledore came to the conclusion that he didn’t have seven Horcruxes at the time of his downfall, because…

Jamie: Oh, really?

Eric: I’m pretty sure that’s canon. I’m almost positive that’s canon. Because…

Jamie: Well, that completely throws out my theory. I should be a better fan.

Eric: Well, no, I could be wrong, but I actually think that was one of the interesting…

Jamie: No. I think that you are right.

Eric: …things about the books, because he had four or five and then made Nagini and something else, but…

Jamie: Yeah.

Eric: …even if he was going to make Harry the seventh or the sixth Horcrux, therefore having seven pieces of soul.

Jamie: The thing that I would say is that even if Harry is the only thing that can bring your downfall, why would you use him to your own ends? Wouldn’t you want him out of the way as soon as possible? It isn’t…

Eric: The prophecy said, “The Dark Lord will mark him as his equal.” That doesn’t mean he’s going to mark him by trying to kill him or…

Jamie: No. It just means that he thinks that he’s his equal, yeah.

Laura: Yeah. He thinks that – he views him as powerful enough to destroy him.

Jamie: Precisely. Precisely, yeah and also…

Andrew: Yeah.

Jamie: …also, Voldemort is proud, but I think his pride has to come second to his slaying in power, and I think that he would much rather create seven, and then just go and get rid of Harry for sure, rather than…

Laura: But don’t you think it’s possible that maybe his pride could sometimes get in the way?

Jamie: Completely. Absolutely I completely agree.

Andrew: Yeah.

Jamie: I think it’s one of his weaknesses just like Dumbledore’s was that he trusted people too easily. I think pride and vanity is one of Voldemort’s and his fear of death is obviously three very, very bad things.

Andrew: Yeah.

Jamie: It’s like he has trophies, you know Ravenclaw, Slytherin and Hufflepuff.

Eric: Yeah, so was Harry’s scar Voldemort’s marking him or was that something else entirely?

Jamie: Well no, no…

Laura: I think that’s the result…

Jamie: …I agree with Laura.

Laura: …of the failed killing curse.

Eric: Yeah but the failed killing curse only resulted because the prophecy had something to do with Voldemort enacting the prophecy which had something to do with Harry having the power.

Laura: Well no, the scar was the result of Lily’s love for Harry.

Jamie: Yeah exactly.

Eric: Well…

Jamie: I agree with you Laura that its marking could just mean – I could mark, I could mark, I dunno, someone as a threat just by thinking that they’re a threat. You know, you’ve marked him or her so it’s like…

Eric: I agree, though it’s been said that when Harry tried or when Voldemort tried to kill Harry, he transferred powers unwittingly…

Laura: He did though.

Eric: …to Harry or some similarities.

Laura: He did.

Eric: What do you mean he did?

Laura: I’m saying he did.

Eric: Oh okay.

Laura: But how does that – what does that have to do with marking him as his equal? It was…

Eric: It has everything to do with marking him as his equal.

Laura: Well, no it was just a mistake as a result.

Jamie: Jerry, Jerry.

Andrew: Yeah. [laughs]

Eric: Well no, just a lot of wierd crap happend and we still don’t know about the scar.

Jamie: That is true.

Andrew: But Dumbledore seemed pretty confident that there are at least six right? Isn’t that what he said?

Laura: At this point I don’t know – I just don’t – I mean just looking at it from a litterary perspective, I don’t see why we would be led to believe that he did have a total of seven including his soul and then be told, “Oh by the way he didn’t really.” So, you know it just seems a little wierd to me.

Jamie: Yeah that is true, yeah.

Andrew: Yeah.

Jamie: That is very true.

Eric: Well, we weren’t told that he had seven were we? We were just told that he was after I think seven.

Laura: Well, that he was after seven but it just seems sort of anti-climactic in a way…

Andrew: Yeah.

Laura: …like he was striving for it and he didn’t even get it.

Andrew: Yeah.

Micah: But why would Harry be a Horcrux though? I don’t – I never understood that point.

Laura: Well, he’s not really saying that Harry’s a Horcrux it just seems like he was trying to use Harry to make a Horcrux.

Micah: Oh no, definately because Dumbledore says that when he tells Harry about the Horcruxes. He says – no he tells Harry that Voldemort went to Godric’s Hollow with the intention of making Harry the final Horcrux.

Laura: Right.

Micah: And I thought there was a moment in the office too that Harry starts to pose the question as to whether he is a Horcrux and Dumbledore says, “No!” Do you guys remember that?

Eric: I kind of remember that, yeah.

Andrew: Really?

Laura: Uhhh.

Eric: But it’s not, it wasn’t strong enough because Dumbledore also, you know, at the end of Book 2…

Micah: No, no.

Eric: …was contemplating when he – it’s so finely touched upon when Dumbledore tells Harry that he unwittingly transferred some of his powers and that is no doubt why you have a trouble making side, but then we learned that his father had a trouble making side too. And also the Sorting Hat about wanting to put Harry in Slytherin because of all his Voldemort similarities or not. The choices overruling that.

Laura: The Parseltoungue.


Is Voldemort Taking a Risk by Going After Harry Again?


Andrew: If Harry is a Horcrux wouldn’t Voldemort be taking a risk by trying to kill him twice?

Eric: You know Andrew, what does MuggleNet.com’s

Andrew: In Book 5?

Eric:What Will Happen in Book Seven say about this?

[Laura and Micah laugh]

Andrew: I never read it.

Eric: Because you know what…

Andrew: I never read it. I never read it.

Eric: …Jamie, Jamie you almost – you were apart of that book. What do they say about Horcruxes and if Harry’s a Horcrux or not?

Jamie: We believe…

Eric: I could just pull up Emerson – okay good, just go.

Jamie: …we believe that Harry is a Horcrux. You’d have to read the actual book but it is a very very convincing argument. I can’t exactly remember what we put down because I didn’t personally write that chapter, but it is a pretty convinving argument.

Eric: Thank you.

Laura: I don’t think Harry is a Horcrux but…

Jamie: No, no, you…

Andrew: Ben’s trying to

Jamie: …Laura, Laura…

Andrew: …next time Ben’s on the show we’ll have him.

Jamie: …you can’t say that.

Laura: I’m not on the cover I can say what I want.

[Eric and Laura laugh]

Jamie: You can’t, you can’t, you’re in the book. No seriously, you can’t say that. I think – I don’t think he’s a Horcrux. I didn’t write that, but…

Laura: Well I don’t – I don’t really think it matters what our personal opinions are I think people…

[Andrew laughs]

Eric: Though I do appreciate Jamie’s loyalty or sense of loyalty.

Jamie: Oh it’s not loyalty it’s just – cause I don’t agree with that. It’s just that I do – I don’t think we should publically say that I don’t agree with a book that I helped write, but I don’t care enough Laura really…

Laura: Okay.

Jamie: …so say what the hell you like.

Laura: Okay, thank you. Yeah.

Andrew: Let’s – next voicemail now.


Voicemail: Moaning Myrtle’s Death


[Audio]: Hi guys this is Jessica, I’m sixteen from St-louis Missouri. I’m in the middle of listening to Episode 96 and you just brought up the point that maybe Voldemort made a Horcrux out of Moaning Myrtle’s death, well I was wondering if that was even possible because he didn’t actaully do the act of killing, he sent he Basilisk on her, so I don’t really know if he could actually make a Horcrux out of Moaning Myrtle’s death. Just wanted to know what you guys thought about that. I love the show! Jamie’s my favorite! Bye.

Jamie: Can I take this one?

Andrew: Yes, if yeah go on.

Jamie: No, no sorry go on.

Andrew: Well yes, if our discussion a couple of weeks ago was to be believed. Where we were studying what it takes to actually make a Horcrux out of something correct?

Eric: Yeah.

Andrew: You have to be present for the killing and then actually – there’s some spell or some way to encapsule the soul and then…

Jamie: No but, I was going to say the reason it has to be you is that you can’t – you have to split your soul and that can only be achieved by you doing the killing. I’d say you know, you have to have like a guilty mind and do the killing for it to – because you know it’s a violation of nature so you have to violate nature.

Andrew: Right. You personally.

Jamie: Yeah exactly you have to violate nature.

Eric: Well, well, setting the Basilisk on her though, that’s why it’s interesting – setting the Basilisk. Just commanding the Basilisk to kill her, that’s like commanding a firing squad to kill somebody.

Jamie: No but, but Eric.

Laura: But yeah, it was almost like the Basilisk was an instrument.

Jamie: It is.

Laura: I kind of wonder how much accountability is taken into consideration when something like…

Jamie: If I told…

Laura: …this is done.

Jamie: If I told you to tell Eric, to tell Micah, to tell Andrew, to tell Emerson…

Laura: This is not the Goblet of Fire< movie.

Jamie: …to tell Ben, to kill, to kill, – no seriously…

Eric: It’s not that long winded though. It’s not that long winded though.

Jamie: Seriously, to kill, like, a random person I wouldn’t be guilty of it. You know, I couldn’t split my soul from that.

Laura: Well, no…

Jamie: I think you actually have to perform the killing.

Eric: All we’re saying is – all we’re suggesting is…

Laura: You can’t really compare that. Riddle had complete control over the Basilisk.

Eric: Yeah, exactly. All he says is – he commands a giant snake to attack a girl.

Jamie: But he isn’t actually doing it though. You know, saying – saying, “Go and kill him”…

Eric: But his malice, his…

Jamie: …I bet the act…

Laura: But I guess the point is…

Jamie: Malice, I know he’s got malice, but he isn’t doing it. He isn’t killing anyone.

Laura: The difference is – the difference is that he means it, though, I think. Whenever…

Jamie: He does mean it.

Laura: …you turn to Andrew, and say, “Go kill Laura.” I would hope that you were kidding.

[Eric laughs]

Jamie: No, Laura, I’m a serial killer.

[Laura laughs]

Jamie: You can see it in my eyes.

Laura: But I mean – you can, absolutely.

Eric: You can.

Laura: But if- but if Tom Riddle, or Lord Voldemort turns somebody and says, “Kill them,” he’s completely not joking. He’s completely serious.

Jamie: Of course he isn’t. He isn’t, but…

Eric: I was just wondering if it splits your soul. I mean…

Laura: I’m just wondering…

Jamie: It’s a proxy killing. I don’t see…

Laura: …how precise it is, I suppose.

Jamie: Exactly, yeah. It doesn’t… It’s like, if, I just don’t think if you actually – if you actually kill someone that you’re violating nature by… I think it depends if the violation of nature is what splits your soul, or whether it’s the sort of decision to kill someone. Because if like, if say you stab someone and that kills them, if the stabbing is the thing that splits your soul, then perhaps you do have to do it. But if, as you say, and it’s a very good point, that it’s the malice, you know, intent that you have, the sort of guilty mind of doing it, then perhaps it’s that that splits your soul. Or perhaps it’s the ability to be able to kill that can do it. I don’t know.

Eric: Well, I just think that – all I’m thinking – I know you can have malice, but then there’s what actually takes to do the unforgivable curses, for instance.

Jamie: Well, yeah. Yeah.

Eric: Well…

Jamie: Yeah, precisely. Yeah.

Eric: …what I’m saying though is that commanding the basilisk to kill Moaning Myrtle is killing Moaning Myrtle, as far as I’m concerned. I think that should have been powerful enough to split a soul, because you are sending the big snake on this girl. I think that is strong enough, not just a utility or a tool, but I think that sould be strong enough to split Voldemort’s soul.

Jamie: Yeah.

Eric: I don’t think that anything…

Jamie: Yeah, that’s true.

Eric: …you know, not just thinking about it being evil enough to possibly do it, but if you – I still think it should count when you set the snake on her that was killing.

Laura: Right.

Eric: That was him killing her.

Laura: Okay, are we ready for the next one?

Jamie: Yeah.


Voicemail: Dumbledore and the Mirror of Erised


[Audio]: Hey MuggleCast, this is Marc. I’m 14 and I live in North Carolina. My question is, in the 2005 interview with J. K. Rowling, Emerson asked Jo what Dumbledore would see if he looked in the Mirror of Erised. Jo couldn’t answer this question which, obviously, means what Dumbledore wanted more than anything was not for Voldemort to be defeated. If he didn’t want that, what do you think Dumbledore did want more than anything? Could it have something to do with the look of triumph? Tell me what you think. Thanks! Bye!

Andrew: Do you really think so, though?

[Silence]

Eric: Well, I don’t know

Andrew: Well, close off that.

Laura: Well, I think what she’s saying is that if Dumbledore’s greatest wish was for Voldemort to be defeated, why would she have to be so secretive about it?

Jamie: Wouldn’t Dumbledore, as a person who is typically known as seeing the wider picture realized that evil isn’t vanquished just because one evil person is vanquished. Voldemort, you know, Grindelwald sounds very, very deadly, and he, for all we know, could be more powerful than Voldemort. If you take the prophecy to be gospel, then Dumbledore couldn’t – you know, one interpretation of the prophecy,if you take that to be gospel then Dumbledore couldn’t defeat Voldemort. So, it could be that Voldemort isn’t as powerful as Grindelwald.

Eric: That’s very intelligent.

Laura: Yeah.

Jamie: Well thank you, Eric.

Laura: I really don’t think that. I don’t think that she was doing that just to, kind of, leave the question open. I think that what Dumbledore would want most is significant. As for it applying to the gleam of triumph in his eye, I’m not sure. I mean, that could have been for a million different reasons. But I think that…

Jamie: That’s true.

Laura: …generally, over all, Dumbledore just wants a peaceful world. I don’t really think he wants more than that.

Micah: I mean, I could see it just being something as simple as – I mean…

Laura: Yeah, but if you remember…

Micah: Maybe he didn’t see anything. Maybe he just saw himself. Maybe he doesn’t, isn’t affected by something like that.

Laura: But- but didn’t he say that only the happiest…

Andrew: Yeah.

Laura: …man on earth would see himself as he is?

Andrew: Yep.

Laura: I don’t think- I don’t know. I just don’t see him as the happiest man on earth, but if you remember in Sorcerer’s Stone, Harry asked Dumbledore what he saw himself as in the Mirror of Erised, and he said that he saw himself holding a pair of socks…

Andrew: Right.

Laura: …but Harry got the distinct impression that he was lying.

Andrew: Of course, that’s what Dumbledore does, and Harry was too young to understand even if he wanted to tell him the truth. So…

[Laura laughs]


Voicemail: The Symbol


[Audio]: Hey, MuggleCast, this is Emily, 14, from New York. I’m calling in regard to the symbol on the spine of the U.K. children’s edition of Deathly Hallows. I was on the Leaky Lounge recently and I came across a new theory about it. Someone suggested that it’s the one that you use to make a Horcrux. Each shape is a different part of casting the spell. The circle is for the piece of soul being preserved, the triangle symbolizes the object into which the piece of soul was encapsulated, and the line is the splitting of the soul. I’m not exactly sure how this fits in with the delta phi and the white marble, but anyway this isn’t my theory. All the credit goes to the person from the Leaky Lounge. In any case, I’m anxious to hear your thoughts on this. I love the show, keep up the awesome work. Bye. Pickles!

Andrew: That’s a great theory. I like that.

Jamie: It is awesome, yeah.

Laura: That actually is a very good theory…

Andrew: Again…

Laura: …whoever came up with it, butI like it a lot.

Andrew: It does appear to be engraved on something. Like, on the spine. It was – it was, like, on that marble and there was some debate over, well, what is it on? Is it on Dumbledore’s tomb? But then some people shot that down. Is it on somewhere we haven’t seen yet? So, I mean even if it is engraved on something, I guess it could still suggest what you have to do. I’m just trying to think how they would discover that. Like, “Hmmm. Here’s the symbol. What do we do with it?”

Laura: It’s Horcrux instructions, Andrew.

Andrew: It reminds me of like…

Laura: It’s sort of like when they hand out papers in class with instructions…

Andrew: I guess. I guess…

Laura: …on how to do something.

Andrew: …but it’s not like – it’s not like “Step 1: Circle. Step 2: Triangle…”

[Everyone laughs]

Jamie: “Hold wand between two fingers.”

Andrew: Right.

Jamie: “Step 2: Kill someone.”

[Laura laughs]

Andrew: What this does remind me of…

Jamie: “Step 3…”

Andrew: …shout out to all you N64 fans out there, is Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, where you’d get these little things on how to play…

Jamie: Oh, good game.

Andrew: …your Ocarina. And then [sings Zelda ocarina song]. Ocarina.

Eric: The macarena?

Jamie: Yeah. [starts singing different song]

Eric: Marcarena?

Andrew: Ocarina. No, not the macarena.

[Everyone laughs]

Eric: Sorry, I was just playing the original Legend of Zelda on the Gameboy Advance. They did the NES version of it and I have the original Legend of Zelda.

Andrew: Neato. Yeah, yeah.

Eric: Very hard. Very hard game.

Andrew: Yeah.

Laura: Jamie?

Jamie: Yes?

Laura: Have you ever done the macarena?

Jamie: No, I have. Yeah. Embarassingly enough.

[Everyone laughs]

Jamie: Have you?

Laura: It’s going to be – that’s going to be my next blickle.

Andrew: I was just going to say. Pickle Pack content for this week!

[Andrew and Laura laugh]

Eric: What, the macarena?

Laura: Yeah. Why not?

Micah: That was a one hit wonder.

Laura: It really was.

Jamie: It was, yeah.

[Laura laughs]

Andrew: I listen to it everyday still.

Laura: Okay.

Andrew: But, no, any other theories about that theory? I think that’s a great idea.

Laura: Yeah, it is really…

Jamie: It’s – it’s brilliant. Yeah.

Laura: …fabulous.

Andrew: Jo? Any comments?

Micah: Jo?

Andrew: Jo.

Micah: Did you say Jo?

[Eric laughs]

Andrew: I did.

Jamie: No, she’s keeping quiet. Come on, Jo, it’s your first time on the show.

Andrew: [in high girly voice] Ah, yes, that’s an excellent theory. I like that theory.

Jamie: Is it true though, Jo?

[Laura laughs]

Andrew: [still in high girly voice] Thumbs up to the Leaky Lounge.

Laura: Oh my god.

Andrew: [high girly voice] I can’t say anything yet.

Laura: Andrew! She should – she would feel insulted.

[Micah and Andrew laugh]

Eric: I told you. We should have long time – a long time a go, we should have had a British woman on the show just to throw everyone off. It’s too late to do it now, but don’t you guys think it’s cool that show 100 is on the DH release? Come on.

Jamie: It is awesome.

Andrew: Yeah, it couldn’t be better.

Laura: In London. No doubt.

Micah: Yeah.

Andrew: Back in August 2005, we actually planned it that way. We were like “Yeah, we’re going to skip a show this week, this week, this week…”

Jamie: Yeah, we did.

Andrew: “…Jamie’s going to…”

Eric: Yeah, we’re going to slack of for this many weeks.

Andrew: “…pick the wrong train times this week, which will then add two extra shows so by July.”

Jamie: We got it tatooed on our bodies so we just know exactly when, you know?

[Laura laughs]

MuggleCast 97 Transcript (continued)


Dueling Club: James and Sirius vs. Fred and George


Andrew: Good stuff. So we will have more voicemails soon and we will get to the hotline numbers at the end of the show if you’re interested in calling in your question. We are doing to do a Due – Dueling Club segment now. It was – this was sent into me the other day.

“Hey Andrew, I have an idea for a possible ‘dueling club’-esque debate you guys could do on the show, maybe for the 100th episode.”

Okay, well we’re doing it now.

[Jamie laughs]

Andrew: “In a pranking/mischief-making competition, who would win: Fred and George, or a young James and Sirius? It could be a fun debate, I was thinking about it the other day and I couldn’t decide myself. Of course, you would have to think of it in a hypothetical universe where they’re the same age and the latter aren’t dead. But you probably knew that.”

Yes.

[Everyone laughs]

Jamie: I love this person already. Who sent this in?

Eric: Jamie, that was – that was just to prevent you from saying “Well, James and Sirius won’t be doing much joking.”

Andrew: Exactly.

Jamie: I was going to, I was going to say, “Wow!”

Andrew: Our listeners are well-trained.

Laura: That’s very good, Eric. That’s something he would say.

Jamie: They are well trained. Well done!

Andrew: This comes from Isabelle of Seattle, Washington. So…

Laura: Great city.

Andrew: …I think James and Sirius would have more knowledge. Fred and George aren’t the brightest bulbs in the boxes.

Laura: I kind of got the idea thast James and Sirius were a bit more malicious than Fred and George. Like, you don’t really…

Jamie: Yeah, I agree. Yeah.

Laura: …see them doing so much pranking as just picking on people.

Andrew: Yeah.

Eric: Yeah, that’s true.

Jamie: Yeah, exactly. And Fred and George would be, like, good jokers. Like, they’d always have a comeback and they’d always know what to say so, you know, and they work so well together, even though James and Sirius do as well.

Laura: And they never get mad. Like, James and Sirius always got so upset and hot-headed and Fred and George keep their cool.

Eric: Yeah, I actually agree with that. I’m saying Fred and George because they’re the pranksters. Sames and Jirius – Sames and Jirius?! [laughs]

Jamie: Oh, steady.

Eric: James and Sirius were the trouble makers, not necessarily the pranksters, but the trouble makers. They were the actual ones…

Jamie: Precisely, yeah.

Eric: …who caused trouble. I think, you know, Fred and George might have a better sense of humor or a better ability to, you know what I mean? I mean, they test their own product on themselves. You know, James and Sirius might not actually, like, do that. Like, Fred and George are the pranksters, I think. They’re just so much better. They have a shop.

Jamie: That is true, yeah.

Eric: They’ve always been fascinated with that kind of, you know, prank. Good hearted fun. Whereas James and Sirius, kind of, you know, go wherever the wind blows them.

Andrew: Any way the wind blows.

[Jamie laughs]

Jamie: [sings] Any way the wind blows…

Andrew: I guess that’s true. Okay, Eric.

Eric: Yes?


Crackpot Theory of the Week


Andrew: Crackpot Theory. Are you ready?

Eric: Yes, yes, yes.

Andrew: I just pulled this out of my e-mail real quick. Elyssa, 16 of Norway says, “Snape is the real Dark Lord and Voldemort is just a puppet created and used by him!” Go!

[Eric laughs]

Andrew: Yeah.

Jamie: Eric, stop stalling. Do it.

Eric: Snape is – okay, Snape is actually the real Voldemort because…

Andrew: The real Dark Lord and Voldemort is just a puppet created and used by him.

Eric: Yes. Okay, well, Voldemort is a puppet and you can tell that by the original trailer pictures of Goblet of Fire. There’s a little, you know, kind of baby-looking thing. No. Okay, Snape
lives on Spinner’s End and that’s actually a pun used by JKR because the – she’s been spinning this web of deceit, and of course at the end of the series you will learn the actual truth.

Andrew: Oh Rrrright.

Jamie: Not bad, not bad at all.

Laura: I was waiting for you to say that Voldemort was a puppet as seen on the Potter Puppet Pals…

[Andrew laughs]

Laura: …but…

[Eric laughs]

Andrew: No, but also he sort of looks like a puppet. He sort of – especially on the Order of the Phoenix teaser poster. He’s sort of like a – he doesn’t look like has a full body, it’s almost like…

Eric: Actually, he looks like Kermit the Frog to me, but…

Andrew: He sort of does, and he’s got his hand sticking out like a puppet would if you were to hold out that stick that holds out the hand, but – no, that’s, eh, very crackpot, and probably absolutely not true at all. If you have a crackpot theory for Eric, e-mail it in to the MuggleCast Feedback Form.

Eric: [groans] Why hasn’t this segment been destroyed?

Jamie: And make it as crackpot as possible.

Andrew: Yeah, Eric will not read it, but here’s the thing – when you e-mail in a crackpot theory, for one, put in the subject line, “Crackpot Theory.” Second of all, put your crackpot theory, and then list your ways of proving it, so then we’ll read it after his. Let me actually read Elyssa’s proof for this. She writes, “I know, I know it’s impossible, but I don’t know. J.K. Rowling loves to use red herrings and Snape had Half-Blood Prince, which was like the first half of Deathly Hallows, named after him. That means he’s a very, very significant character, plus wouldn’t it be, like, an incredible plot twist if Voldemort turned out to be just a phantom of some sort controlled by Snape?” So, that was her defense.


Make The Connection


Jamie: Now we go to “Make the Connection” where you have to make a random connection between Harry Potter and something. It could be anything. So, Laura, your one this week is Harry Potter and replacing one-dollar bills with miniscule hamsters.

Laura: Ohhhhkay…

Eric: [laughs] It could be anything.

Laura: It could be anything.

Jamie: Come on, Laura. Snap, snap.

Laura: Well, I mean, Fred and George did replace people’s wands with those fake wands that turned into other things. So, I mean, you never know. Somebody – I don’t know. All I get is the replacement aspect of this, Jamie.

Eric: [laughing] So they could pull out a dollar bill and – oops! – there’s a hamster?

Jamie: Precisely, yeah. Exactly.

Eric: Courtesy of Fred and George.

Jamie: Yeah, that was pretty good.

Laura: Jamie? There’s times like this when I wonder like – I don’t know.

Andrew: What he thinks about during the day?

Laura: I- I just. Yeah.

[Everyone laughs]

Laura: I really do. I wonder, like, anytime I’m talking to you and your IM window goes completely idle, I’m like, “What is he – what’s he thinking about?”

[Everyone laughs]

Laura: If he comes up with stuff like replacing dollar bills with hamsters, but yeah, I mean, that’s all I’ve got, just Fred and George replacing the wands with…

Jamie: That was good. That was pretty good. I would say – can I just say – I would say that the aspect of replacing one-dollar bills with miniscule hamsters is taking something you know and trust dearly – like you trust that you put your hand in your pocket and take out a one-dollar bill and replacing it with something you aren’t so keen on and aren’t used to, so I think that
Harry being thrust into the wizarding life could be, you know, he’s used to waking up in his closet, but I think that could be one of them.

Laura: [laughs] But Jamie, that’s an ill comparison because you were talking about last time how we’ve gotta do it correctly and…

Jamie: Yes.

Laura: …from the one-dollar bill aspect you’re talking about a person’s trust being deceived and from the other you’re talking about Harry’s being thrown into the world…

Jamie: No, no – not deceived. No, no, I’m just talking about things –the expectation of normality…

Laura: Whatever, Jamie.

Jamie: …and the replacement…

Laura: You’re wrong. You’re wrong. Nope

Jamie: Okay. Okay, fine. I accept that.

[Everyone laughs]

Jamie: Okay, Micah. Yours is Harry Potter and Elvis flying a UFO into the yeti.

Andrew: [under his breath] Oh my god.

Micah: [laughs] Into a yeti.

[Eric laughs]

Micah: Oh, well clearly if you go back to Chamber of Secrets, Harry and Ron flew a car into the Whomping Willow, so that’s about all I can do with that.

Jamie: [laughs] I like that. Very much. Very, very much.

[Eric laughs]

Jamie: Okay, Andrew.

Andrew: Yes?

Jamie: This relates to a video you saw today, so if you don’t get this, it’s going to be slightly disappointing. Your connection is Harry Potter

Andrew: I’m trying to think about which videos I’ve seen today.

Jamie: You’ve seen a lot. This one is Harry Potter and buying an iPhone and dropping it the minute you get it out of the box.

[Everyone laughs]

Andrew: Let me say something first. There’s this hilarious video on YouTube – the iPhone just came out yesterday and there’s this awesome video on YouTube where this guy – it’s very windy out – the guy opens his iPhone up, brand new, and the first thing that happens is that the iPhone just flies out and lands on concrete. It’s the funniest thing I’ve ever seen in my life. But, anyway…

Laura: Can I get a link to that? Because that’s pretty funny.

Jamie: It is very funny. It’s very funny.

Andrew: We’ll put a link to that in the show notes. It’s actually on Digg. It’s so sad, I feel bad for him. And then after that, there’s a clip that shows him buying a case for it. But the iPhone still worked, thankfully. Anyway…

[Jamie laughs]

Andrew: I guess the connection you can make between this is that it’s dumb luck. You know, you’re always looking forward to a big event like this. Say Harry was looking forward to one of his Quidditch matches – remember the dementors took over by sweeping in and they got in the way and he crashed and all that. So, I mean, I guess there’s a lot of examples in Harry Potter where there is a big event or there is something that someone was really looking forward to and then all of the sudden, you’re done.

Jamie: Very good.

Andrew: But narrowly escaped, as this guy in the YouTube video, he did escape. His iPhone was okay. Harry was okay. And I cannot wait to buy an iPhone myself.

Jamie: [laughs] Very good. Eric?

Eric: Yep?

Jamie: Your connection is between Harry Potter and a tsunami of chocolate milk.

Eric: [laughs] All right, the tsunami of chocolate milk will probably be caused by seismic activity deep in the heart of the chocolate ocean. And seismic activity, as we know, comes from the center of the earth, obviously. The rotating core of the earth causes shifting tectonic plates and creates the magnetic field and all sorts of basic tremors and things that cause earthquakes, as did the tsunami of the Malaysia region on Christmas 2004.

[Laura laughs]

Jamie: Very good, Eric, very good.

Eric: Now, the tsunami…

Jamie: Very good examples, very good.

Eric: Now, in a scenario of chocolate tsunami, or in any scenario, if it’s a tsunami, it could be caused very really by an earthquake. And I was thinking about that as it related to the core of the earth and it just really made me more excited for Deathly Hallows, really, because we’ve got another book with Lupin surviving in it, and Lupin is best known for his chocolate, and chocolate is supposed to give you…

Jamie: Wings! Yeah.

Eric: …warm, fuzzy thoughts which the book series could do well with some of. And they’ll be going to what we’ve speculated, the core of the earth, or at least underground where Gringotts is, and that could be where something happens that causes a great big shift in the tectonic plates, and there could be a collision somewhere. And in the world of chocolatiers and the NesQuick and Coco Puff bird, that could be a serious problem for some of them.

[Micah laughs]

Eric: I think a lot of people are coming up with a lot of the ramifications that Harry Potter Book 7 may have on the advertising world.

Jamie: Okay, Eric, you win.

[Andrew and Jamie laugh]

Laura: Oh my god. [laughs]

Jamie: That was very good. Very, very good indeed. I’m very impressed.

Andrew: God.

Laura: I think this segment is now called, “Make the Century” as opposed to, “Make the Connection.”

[Andrew laughs]

Eric: Well, if it replaces my Crackpot Theory, I don’t mind…

Laura: It was a joke, Eric.

Eric: …because I just totally had no idea what to do.

Laura: That was a joke.

Jamie: That was awesome.

Andrew: That was good, though.

Eric: Thank you.

Jamie: Do you want a joke?

Andrew: Is that it? Is that everyone?

Eric: Yes.


Jamie’s British Joke of the Day


Andrew: Jamie, got a British joke to wrap up your…

Micah: Jamie that was terrible.

Jamie: I’ve got two jokes. I’ve got two jokes. Okay, there was this Packers fan with a really crappy seat at Lambeau, is that it? Looking with his binoculars, he spotted an empty seat on the 50-yard line. Thinking to himself, “What a waste,” he made his way down to the empty seat. Now, when he arrived at the seat, he asked the man sitting next to it, “Is this seat taken?” The man replied, “This was my wife’s seat. She passed away. She was a big Packers fan.” The other man replied, “I’m so sorry to hear of your loss. May I ask why you didn’t give the ticket to a friend or a relative?” The man replied, “They’re all at the funeral.”

[Everyone laughs]

Jamie: And one last one. And this sort of makes fun of one state. The only reason I’ve picked this state, Andrew, is because you live there. So I don’t think anything bad about this state, in fact I love this state. So, the National Transportation Safety board recently divulged that they had covertly funded a project with the U.S. auto makers for the past five years, whereby the auto makers were installing black box voice recorders in pickup trucks. This was done in an effort to determine, when accidents occurred, the circumstances in the last 15 seconds before the crash. They were surprised to find in 59 – no, sorry – in 49 of the 50 states, the last words of drivers in 61.2 percent of crashes were, “Oh, no!” Only, the state of New Jersey was different, where 89.3 percent of the final words were, “Hold my beer and watch this!”

Andrew: [laughs] I’ve heard that joke before. That’s not true. New Jersey’s not…

Eric: That’s a bit of an elaborate joke.

Andrew: …the armpit of America that everyone seems to think it is.

Laura: Sounds like Georgia, but…

[Everyone laughs]

Andrew: Didn’t your dad say that the other day?

Eric: “It sounds like my state,” says like half the listeners. Yeah.


Chicken Soup for the MuggleCast Soul


Andrew: Well, let’s wrap things up today with a final Chicken Soup, here. This one comes from Joe, 19, of Sewickley, Pennsylvania.

“Hey, guys, and Laura! I had the honor (please note the sarcasm) of being selected for jury duty and had to report for it last Monday. From talking to neighbors and such about how I had to go, they told me that it would be one of the most boring days of my life. They then told me to bring a book or something to do to keep myself busy for the day.”

We all know where this is going.

“I got to the court house a little before 8 AM, and basically sat there doing nothing until a little after 4 p.m.”

Oh, that stinks.

“Luckily, I brought my iPod and had many episodes of MuggleCast on there to keep me busy during those long, horrible, and dull hours.”

Jamie: Wow.

Andrew: “I also received many stares from the older crowd of people around me (I’m 19) as I sat there in the lounge chuckling to myself. At one point I literally laughed out loud and had three quarters of the room staring at me when Andrew made that awesome joke.”

Basically on every episode he’s ever been on.

“The one person sitting next to me asked what I was listening to…”

Jamie: Which joke…

Andrew: Huh?

Jamie: …do you make on every one?

Andrew: Like, a variety. Like, different ones every week.

“The one person sitting next to me…”

Jamie: Oh, I’m sorry. I thought she said one specific joke. Sorry, go on.

Andrew: No, it’s a he, but yeah.

“The one person sitting next to me…”

Jamie: Oh sorry.

Andrew: “…asked me what I was listening to since I was laughing, and I told her that I was listening to MuggleCast, which is a “Harry Potter” podcast, and she told me that she was also obsessed with “Harry Potter.” The both of us discussed what we thought would happen to the boy wizard as well as the many theories we supported. So, I just wanted to thank you guys so much for making what was supposed to be one of the most boring days of my life, one that was very relaxing and enjoyable! You guys are keeping my spirits up (I just found out we were leaving for Italy on July 20th, the day before HP7 comes out, for a three week vacation)…”

Oh, then he could stop by our big event…

“So, thanks for everything you do and for keeping a smile on my face! Thanks again and keep up the fantastic work! Joe…”

Jamie: Can I just say…

Andrew: “…Sewickley, Pennsylvania.”

Jamie: I’m extremely jealous because I want to do jury service. I really, really, really would love to…

Andrew: You do not.

Jamie: I would like a really, really complex case.

Laura: I would, too.

[Eric laughs]

Jamie: I want a murder case, or treason…

Andrew: You are nuts, sir.

[Eric laughs]

Jamie: …or like international espionage, or war crimes, or crimes against humanity, but I know I’m going to get something rubbish. How about you, Laura? What case do you want?

Laura: Oh, well, anything along those lines, but knowing me, I would get…

Jamie: Yeah.

Laura: …some B.S. like, like stole a CD from the local…

[Andrew and Jamie laugh]

Laura: …store.

Eric: “Today, on The People’s Court.” Piece of crap.

[Andrew laughs]

Eric: You know, “You stole my…”

Laura: I want to be on – have you ever wanted to be on Judge Judy? [laughs]

Eric: [laughs] Yeah, I’d love to.

Laura: I have always wanted to be on Judge Judy.

Andrew: Oh, it’d be great.

Jamie: Just start your own show.

Laura: But anyway.

Jamie: Start your own show.

Laura: No, no, no. I mean…

Jamie: Judge Laura Thompson.

Eric: Judge Laura!

Laura: No, no, no. I want to be on Judge Judy. I want to be one of the psychos…

Jamie: No, no, no, no, no.

[Everyone laughs]

Jamie: You don’t, you don’t. The cases are so, so, sort of, like, immature and childish. It’s like, “He stole my CDs,” as you say.

Laura: I know, they’re hilarious.

Jamie: I Know I saw one. I know, I saw one, and like these – this…

[Eric laughs]

Jamie: …mother stole her daughter’s boyfriend’s CDs, or something like that. What – how can anyone go to court over that?

Andrew: Oh, gosh.

Jamie: If you’re listening now, I think you’re sad.

Laura: I don’t know, Jamie. You stole my hair thing last summer.

Jamie: I stole what?

Laura: You never gave it back. My hair thing, you stole it. You never gave it back. I’m going to sue you.

Jamie: What hair thing?

Eric: That’s what they call a claims court.

Laura: No joke.

Jamie: Oh.

Laura: You had a hair thing of mine, you never gave it back.

Jamie: I stole it on purpose. I smell it every night just before I go to bed.

Andrew: Mmmm.

Laura: Ugh, gross.


Eric’s Realization


Eric: Guys, let’s do something here. Let’s just participate in something called, “Making it Real,” guys. By the end of this month, Harry Potter 7 will be out.

Andrew: I know. It’s very scary.

Eric: But by the end of this month, we’ll know everything that ever happens in Harry Potter. I think I floored you guys with that.

Andrew: In a month from now…

Eric: At the end of this month…

Andrew: It’s true, it’s true.

Jamie: It’s true, yeah.

Eric: …we will know what happens.

Andrew: In Harry Potter 7.

Eric: And we’ll also know if Harry Potter 5 is a good movie or not, but, you know.

Jamie: I know, it’s unbelievable.

Eric: It’s so close, it’s not even funny, like – can you imagine, like – just how long have you been Harry Potter fans and not known how it would all end?

Andrew: I know, it’s crazy.

Eric: Anyway.

Laura: Ah, okay. [laughs]


Show Close


Andrew: No, but we do want to remind everyone about our contact information. Then we’ll have a little more banter, of course. You can contact the P.O. box. Laura, how do people mail stuff via P.O. box?

Laura: You can mail stuff to:

P.O. Box 3151
Cumming, Georgia

30028

I’m kind of amazed because nobody burst into laughter when I said it this time. It’s awesome, I was waiting for it…

Andrew: We’re all very mature.

Laura: …because usually Jamie just loses it.

Andrew: We’re all very mature here.

Laura: Yeah, right. [laughs]

Andrew: We do want to remind everyone, you can contact us via telephone also. If you’re in the United States, you can dial 1-218-20-MAGIC. If you’re in the United Kingdom you can dial 020-8144-0677. If, if, if, if, if, whoa – if you’re in Australia you can dial 02-8003-5668. And who knows, maybe your voicemail will be on the next MuggleCast. Try to keep the questions general, don’t go off on some silly theory or something that’s absurd. Come on.

Jamie: Andrew, make it…

Andrew: Just admit it to yourself.

Jamie: …more enthusiastic.

Andrew: No, because then we just won’t play it.

Jamie: Be sarcastic. It’ll be more chance of getting on.

Andrew: Or you can Skype the username MuggleCast. That’s M-U-G-G-L-E-C-A-S-T on Skype. Just remember for either calling or Skype message, keep your message under a minute long and eliminate as much background noise as possible. You can also visit MuggleCast.com for a handy feedback forum to contact anyone of us, or just use our first name at staff dot mugglenet dot com. We also have the community outlets of course. We’ve got the
MySpace, the Frappr, the Facebook, the YouTube, the LastFM, fanlisting and forums over at MuggleCastFan.net. MySpace, MySpace.com/MuggleCastFans. You can also Digg the show at Digg.com. Vote for us once a month at Podcast Alley, it’s a new month so make sure you do that. Well, it will be a new month very soon. Oh no, it is a new month. Happy July, everyone, happy July. And also rate and review us at Yahoo! Podcasts and on iTunes, of course. That’s about it. I’m in Jamie’s room and I want to get out of here.

Jamie: [laughs and sings] I want to break free! Don’t you, Andrew?

Andrew: Yes, I do. So…

Jamie: Why do you want to get out of there? What’s wrong with it?

Andrew: …with that. It’s a little cramped; it’s a little too blue. I like the pink room that you’re in right now.

Jamie: Oh do you, Andrew? You a big fan of the pink?

Andrew: Pink’s sort of my color. Pink’s sort of my color. So, thank you, everyone for listening. Thank you, seriously, thank you.

Jamie: Thank you.

Andrew: Thank you. And you, thank you, just thank you.

Jamie: And you.

Eric: And listeners like you.

Jamie: We should do, like, a…

Andrew: Thank you for spending your time listening to us.

Jamie: You know, on our final show we should do like a graduation read out everyone’s name who ever listened.

Andrew: [laughs] Every single listener.

[Laura laughs]

Jamie: John Smith, thank you.

Andrew: That’s a great idea. Yeah, we’ll do that.

Jamie: Tom Jones, thank you. Kirsty Smith, thank you.

Andrew: For Episode…

Laura: Did John Smith listen to our show?

Andrew: For Episode 101, our final show, please…

Jamie: Yeah.

Andrew: …e-mail us your name and we’ll read it and thank you.

Jamie: Definitely.

Andrew: Just kidding, Episode 101 is not our last show. Please don’t complain.

Eric: We’re going to have so much to talk about.

Laura: That’s Episode 102.

Andrew: Yes, Episode 102. [laughs]

[Laura laughs]

[Show music begins]

Eric: I don’t think we’ll ever be able to end the show, guys. Do you ever think we’ll be able to end the show, though?

Andrew: Yes, absolutely.

Eric: We will do, like, a one year anniversary of the closing. We’ll all come back.

Laura: Yeah.

Jamie: Yeah, we should.

Eric: We’ll have, like, kids. Our children will be on.

Andrew: To be…

Laura: You’re going to have kids…

Jamie: Wow.

Laura: …at the one-year anniversary, Eric?

Eric: No, I mean, five-year anniversary…

Laura: You’ll be, like, 20.

Eric: …ten-year anniversary. We’re never going to be able to be, like – we’ll always be updating the feed…

Andrew: To be honest…

Eric: …because we’ll miss this so much.

Andrew: Yeah. To be honest, I just want to say, I don’t think MuggleCast is ever going to end. However, the weekly podcast will at some point. I don’t think MuggleCast – MuggleCast can go on for years and years, just not on a weekly basis. So, it’ll always be around. We’ll…

Eric: That’s true.

Andrew: I could really see, twenty years from now is a real stretch, but say five, ten years from now, doing an occasional episode. Okay, Jamie. Jamie wants to get out of here. So…

Jamie: It’s just – it isn’t that I want to get out of here, but it’s late, we need to stop making noise.

Andrew: I know it’s late, you’re right. Okay.

[Eric laughs]

Andrew: So, once again, thank you for listening. I’m Andrew Sims.

Jamie: I’m Jamie Lawrence.

Eric: I’m Eric Scull.

Laura: I’m Laura Thompson.

Micah: And I’m Micah Tannenbaum.

Andrew: Visit MuggleCast.com for all the tour information you need, and definitely show up in Chicago or London for two of the biggest events in the world.

Jamie: [pretends to cough] London. Sorry.

[Eric laughs]

Andrew: London. That’s what I said, right?

Eric: Chicago or London.

Jamie: No, I was, I was doing that…

Andrew: Oh, London, lean towards London.

Jamie: …thing where people cough and say something and then pretend they coughed.

Micah: No, no. Oh really? Oh really? I thought you had a cold.

[Andrew and Eric laugh]

Jamie: Yeah.

Andrew: We’ll see everyone next week for Episode 89 – No, oh my gosh, 98. Bye.

Laura: Bye.

Jamie: Buh-bye.

Eric: 98? Jeez. Bye.

[Show Music ends]


Bloopers


Eric: [laughs] Laura. Laura, Laura, Laura. I gave your pants back, right? Did you get them?

Andrew: Hey!

Laura: [laughs] God, Eric.

Andrew: Eric. Eric, that’s…

[Everyone laughs]

Jamie: Nice, Eric.

Laura: No, we have to cut that out.

Andrew: No, listen…

Eric: Did you get your pants back? I just…

Laura: I did get them.

Andrew: Laura wants to…

Eric: Thank you.

Andrew: …cut it out because it’s true. That’s the funny part. Laura, could I just play it off?

Laura: No it’s not!

Jamie: Were they soon to be washed?

Eric: No, look. It’s perfectly – a perfectly good explanation, okay? It was just in Los Angeles. She left a few hours before me…

Andrew: Fair enough.

Eric: …and she packed everything except for one pair of pants and I said, “Oh, that’s Laura’s, I think I should take it with me and I’ll mail it back to her when I get home.”

Andrew: Eight months after the fact.

Eric: Eight months later I did, yeah.

Laura: Yeah, I didn’t get it until, like, right before you left for New Zealand, but whatever.

Andrew: All right. That’s a little weird, Eric.

Eric: Well, better late than never. [laughs]

Jamie: Andrew…

[Laura laughs]

Jamie: We should tell the – we should tell the story of when you found my underwear in your sister’s room. And I don’t know how it got there, seriously. So…

[Eric and Laura laugh]

Andrew: We…

Jamie: So. I seriously have no idea how it got there, so…

Andrew: We’ve moved on from that. I don’t want to think about that.

Jamie: Andrew…

Eric: Guys!

Jamie: Your mum must have sorted it accidently, because I swear I didn’t do anything untoward.

Andrew: It probably was my mom that made the mistake. But – because your underwear is girly underwear, so she must have thought, “Oh, it’s Becca’s.”

Jamie: Yes, completely. I wear knickers.

Andrew: [imitating a British accent] “What are knickers? What are knickers?”

[Everyone laughs]

Andrew: Jamie…

———————–